What does it take to win the Forrest Wood Cup? I posed that question to the last two men who have done so:  2011 Cup Champion Scott Martin, and reigning Champ Jacob Wheeler. Tomorrow we’ll check in with Wheeler. Today we’ll see what Martin has to say.

Having recorded 6 total tour wins, all with an Evinrude E-TEC behind him as he is quick to point out, Martin is especially qualified not only to speak about what it takes to win the Cup but to win on the FLW Tour in general. “Winning any tournament, whether it’s the Cup or one of the other FLW Tour events is extremely hard to do,” said Martin. “You’ve got to be mentally prepared and mentally strong to perform at that level and to win at that level.

“But the Cup is so much different in this way – the pressure of the money. That’s a life-changing amount of money. I mean, they’re giving away $500,000. That’s a big deal. That’s a lot of pressure. Guys always say ‘oh I don’t think about the money’, well they’re lying to themselves because they do.

“Then on top of that, to win the crown jewel of the sport, that trophy, is awesome.”

Martin adds a bit of extra pressure on his own shoulders, “For me it’s all about trying to get another one and separate myself from the pack. I want to win two (Cups) just because no one’s done it yet.”

The cup is also different from any other tournament in terms of the media coverage it generates. That attention, while nice, can take its toll on an angler.

Martin explains, “All the people calling you when you’re doing well in the tournament, all the interviews you’re going to be doing, all the backstage interviews, all of the coverage on the water – all of that is just so much different than just a regular tournament. That pressure right there is what you have to overcome.

“When I won the Cup I made a point to get out of that coliseum as quick as I could. I ran out the back exit every day when I had weighed my fish-in. Jumped in my truck and turned my phone off.

“I love the media but I tried to avoid it as much as possible just for those reasons – I didn’t want to get sucked into it. I tried to treat it as a regular event in my mind.”

Martin made a scouting trip to the Red River several weeks ago mainly for the purpose of learning to navigate waters he may fish. “There are so many backwater areas there. You’ve got to know your way in and out of these places. I run a Ranger boat with an Evinrude outboard and I have put that thing through the wringer. When I was out there in April for a Bassmaster tournament I jumped so many logs and bounced into so many things with that Evinrude but it held up fine.

“But you still want to be careful. You’ve got to know your ins-and-outs. Going out there and GPS-ing the quick ways in and out of these marshes is good. The more time I can fish and keep my bait in the strike zone, the better my chances are so knowing how to get into these backwaters as quick as I can – knowing the shortcuts through the stumps, etc. – that allows me to get back there first and allows me to have more fishing time if I do that several times throughout the day. Having a boat and an engine that will hold up to the abuse that you’re going to put it through at the Red River, that says something about your equipment. I’m telling you that Ranger was airborne. Those stumps lift you up in the air. The Evinrude was nailing those things left and right and it got me in and out, no problem back in April and I fully expect I’ll have the same results next week.”

With regard to tactics, Martin made some guesses as to how the 2013 Cup will likely be won. He expects conventional tactics to rule, for the most part. “The Red River is the type of fishery where you don’t need to stray too far from the norm in order to do well, but obviously with the crazy Alabama Rig opportunities that float around the country at different times of the year, that’s always an oddball thing that may work. I don’t think anybody’s ever been successful on a muddy, Red River type of river with that rig but it could be a sleeper. Another thing which could be good is maybe some really deep cranking.

“And then the last oddball thing there could be making those really long runs, say, down to Pool 3. Two locks. You’re only going to have maybe two-and-a-half, three hours, maybe four hours at best, fishing time. But if you can find some water down there that doesn’t have any other fishing pressure at all, that could give you an advantage.

“The problem is there are no marinas on the river to get gas so you need to have a motor that’s very fuel efficient.

“With that Evinrude E-TEC, I can run it at a certain RPM and get the best fuel economy that I can get and I think, with my calculations, I think I can run as far as I need to down in Pool 3and still have close to three-and-a-half hours of fishing if I can get through the locks with a decent time, as long as a barge doesn’t mess me up.”